The Station on Michael Webber

Weekend Media Reads — Vol. 2

Thu, 13 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

UK plans to phase out Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) got me thinking about the long-term future of over-the-air broadcasting worldwide.

While the UK moves to shift viewers entirely to IP-delivered television, the U.S. is taking a very different route by finding new ways to expand its use of existing broadcast infrastructure.

Here are the stories and topics on my radar this week. Grab a fresh cup of coffee, settle in, and join me for some weekend reads. I hope you enjoy.

Weekend Media Reads — Vol. 1

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This week my RSS reader was filled with news coming out of the FCC. Are they spurring a new wave of broadcast media consolidation? Is the Universal Service Fund (USF) no longer needed in the age of Starlink? Disney also announced all commercial spots for the 2027 Super Bowl have been sold.

So, grab a fresh cup of coffee, settle in, and join me for a quick weekend read.

Media & Tech Insights Roundup

Thu, 21 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Technology is advancing the production process, moving faster than ever. The media landscape is shifting as politics and business models challenge every aspect of our world. As professionals we must strive to stay current from content and engineering perspectives.

Every other week, I gather articles that catch my eye, intrigue, inspire, or just feel relevant to our world. The goal is simply to share what I’m reading and learn from our great colleagues throughout the industry.

Moving my Musings to Obsidian

Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

After years on WordPress, I’m transitioning my digital journal to a more local, file-based system.

Why the Change?

Ownership: My notes stay in my vault.
Speed: Next.js and Docker on my Contabo VPS are lightning fast.
Focus: Writing in Obsidian allows for deep thinking without the clutter of a CMS dashboard.

Technology & Learning

This blog isn’t just a place for updates; it’s a project in itself. Learning to containerize this with Docker has been a great Sunday exercise.

Before Ctrl+Z Exploring Film Editing’s Golden Age with Walter Murch’s Her Name Was Moviola

Sun, 17 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Currently in post-production, Oscar-winning editor Walter Murch is working on a passion project, ‘Her Name was Moviola‘, a documentary about cutting film the way it “used to be done”.

What is a Moviola? Well, simply put the Moviola was a tool used in the process of editing film from the 1920 all the way to the 1970s.

Not a flashy device, but a workhorse of the film industry! Editors like Walter used the Moviola to birth masterpieces like “Citizen Kane” and “Gone with the Wind”, shaping the language of film editing for generations.

Trim video without re-encoding using ffmpeg

Wed, 04 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve been taking the time to learn ffmpeg and some of the really useful stuff you can do with this command line tool (CLI).

Here’s one example of a situation I find myself in frequently and have not had a great solution until now.

The ability to trim a video file without re-encoding!

“Re-encoding” means loss of video quality in my mind. Not quite as bad as copying a VHS tape, known in the analog world as a “generation loss” Having the ability to trim a video file WITHOUT suffering any quality loss, that was a WOW ffmpeg moment for me.

Production Switcher to Zoom

Fri, 08 May 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Backmagic Web Presenter, the perfect tool for the job.

After several weeks on backorder, our Blackmagic Web Presenter arrived from BH Photo!

The “black box” is a simple device that works out of the box. No drives, no software. Simply take the output of your video production switcher, professional SDI camera or HDMI source into the BM Web Presenter. Then connect a USB cable to your PC/Mac and the audio/video signal appears as a 720p HD webcam to the computer.

Stream Deck for Zoom Meetings

Thu, 09 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0000

UPDATE: My setup for Zoom has evolved and somewhat less dependent on StreamDeck now. You may want to check out my new Blog Post with our updated Zoom setup for TV interviews.

This week I purchased a Stream Deck XL ($235) to help streamline our video productions with Zoom remote guests.

Since the COVID-19 crisis hit mid-March our community television station scrambled to adapt and help disseminate important information. Zoom quickly became the go-to platform for setting up meetings and remote show guests.

Backing Up Large Video File Collections to AWS Glacier Deep Archive

Sun, 15 Dec 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Part 1 – Why AWS Glacier Deep Archive?

Backing up large collections of raw video footage and edit masters remains a real challenge for anyone working in the video production world. As the Executive Director of a local community media station, I’m responsible for maintaining a Synology NAS which currently holds 55TB of final edit master videos. The idea of incorporating “Cloud Storage” into our backup procedures has always interested me, but the expense has held me back.

LastPass Unlocked Event

Wed, 09 Oct 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Last Thursday, October 3, 2019 I had an opportunity to attend LastPass’s Unlocked – Cybersecurity & Identity Trends event in Boston, MA.

The panel of security experts included:

Bill Cheswick, Computer Security and Networking Researcher
Gerald Beuchelt, Chief Information Security Officer/Vice President for LogMeIn
Steve Gibson, Software Engineer, Security Researcher, and Host of the Security Now Podcast. grc.com

I’m a big fan of Twit.tv, Leo Laporte, Steve Gibson and I use LastPass every day. So I was really excited to attend the event knowing I’d be participating in an engaging and fun conversation around security, passwords, and learn more about Steve’s solution for passwords, the SQRL project.

Mount Washington TV Geeks

Sun, 28 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Picked up my copy of Marty On The Mountain at The Village Book Store in Littleton, NH.

Mount Washington and Television, two of my life passions in one book.

Marty on the Mountain is a wonderful book full of neat stories about life as a TV engineer on top of Mount Washington. Only 157 pages, the book is a fun read over a quiet weekend.

I’ve had the opportunity to hike and visit the mountain on a number of occasions. In fact, I proposed to my wife after a hike up Tuckerman’s Ravine.

Murch Says 3D Will Never Work

Sun, 30 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The future of 3D is blurry at best, as more and more industry leaders express their concerns with the technology and its long-term viability. Hollywood editor and sound designer, Walter Murch is the latest skeptic to come out, explaining his viewpoint in a letter to Roger Ebert:

“…dark, small, stroby, headache inducing, alienating. And expensive. The question is: how long will it take people to realize and get fed up?”